Jingtai: Making the Ming Dynasty Great Again

Chapter 142 Night Battle at the Inn

That night, Zhou Fu went to the gambling den again.

Lu Gao sent two men to pose as gamblers and approach them.

Around midnight, Zhou Fu lost all his money gambling. Just as he was feeling annoyed, the two men "lent" him five taels of silver and then treated him to drinks.

Zhou Fu was overjoyed and went there immediately.

The wine was laced with drugs.

Zhou Fu went limp after drinking two cups.

Two imperial guards dragged him to a secluded, empty room.

After being splashed with cold water, Zhou Fu woke up.

Zhou Fu looked at the lean man sitting in front of him, who was staring at him.

Zhou Fu shuddered: "You—who are you people?"

The lean man was Lu Guo.

He didn't say anything, but simply took out a waist token from his pocket and showed it to Zhou Fu.

By the candlelight, Zhou Fu could see the words on the waist tag: "Signature of the Commander of the Embroidered Uniform Guard".

His face turned deathly pale instantly.

Dai Gao spoke up: "Zhou Fu, I have a few questions for you. If you answer them well, you may still be able to leave alive."

If you don't answer well————

A member of the Imperial Guard next to him drew a short knife and waved it in the candlelight.

Zhou Fu nodded repeatedly: "Please ask, sir! Please ask, sir! I will tell you everything!"

"Are you in charge of Zhou Ang's accounts?"

Zhou Fu nodded repeatedly: "Yes—yes."

"Where did the rent he collected from those seized farmlands go?"

Zhou Fu swallowed hard: "A portion—a portion went into the master's private treasury, and another portion was given away."

"Who did you give it to?"

"The one in the capital — the lord of the capital."

In March of this year, my father-in-law asked me to prepare several gifts.

On one occasion, it was sent to the residence of a censor surnamed Zhang in the Censorate.

On one occasion, it was delivered to the home of a censor surnamed Wang in the Ministry of Personnel.

Another time it was delivered to ————

Zhou Fu recited a string of names.

Lu Gao's heart pounded wildly as he listened.

The imperial censor surnamed Zhang was Zhang Peng.

The official surnamed Wang was Wang Xuan.

Everything matches perfectly!

The others were merchants from the capital and did not hold official positions in the imperial court.

Lu Gao then asked, "Are there records of these matters?"

Zhou Fu nodded: "Yes, the master asked me to keep a separate account book, which is hidden in a secret compartment in the study."

It was said that it could be used to save one's life in case something happened in the future.

Lu Gao's eyes lit up.

If they could get their hands on that ledger, Zhou Ang would be doomed.

Those censors and supervising officials won't escape either.

He instructed his men to keep a close watch on Zhou Fu, and then convened a meeting overnight to discuss the next steps.

That very night, Zhou Ang also uncovered the background of Lu Gao and his group.

Zhou Ang's personal guards witnessed two men carrying Zhou Fu out of the gambling den and then taking him to an empty house.

Zhou Ang listened to the report from his personal guard with a gloomy expression.

He gritted his teeth and said, "The Embroidered Uniform Guard has traced me back to me."

The trusted confidant beside him was named Ma Cheng, who was Zhou Ang's right-hand man.

He whispered, "Sir, should we—strike first?"

Zhou Ang looked at him: "What do you mean?"

Ma Chengdao said, "There are definitely more than one or two Jinyiwei (Imperial Guards) coming."

We'll find out their background and detain them all.

We'll just say it was a group of bandits impersonating the Imperial Guards, and that we caught them.

"People die at our hands with no way to prove it, what can the imperial court do to us?"

Zhou Ang remained silent for a moment, then a cold glint flashed in his eyes: "Go and do it, and be quick. Remember, leave no survivors."

Ma Cheng accepted the order and left.

Lu Gao was woken up from his sleep.

The person who woke him up was named Zhao Hu.

Zhao Hu whispered, "Sir, something bad has happened. There are people outside the inn."

Lu Gao instantly woke up, rolled out of bed, and went to the window to look outside.

Under the moonlight, the inn was surrounded by shadowy figures, and people were everywhere.

Judging from their uniforms, they are soldiers from the Yongqing Guard.

There were at least one or two hundred people, and they had completely surrounded the inn.

Lu Gao's heart sank: "We've been found out."

He quickly dressed and summoned all the Imperial Guards: "Split up and try to escape as many as you can."

Those who escaped should immediately return to the capital to report the news.

Remember, the ledger detailing Zhou Ang's embezzlement of military farmland, his misappropriation of quotas, and his bribery of officials in the capital is hidden in a secret compartment in his study.

After everyone nodded, they each made their own preparations.

Suddenly, there was a banging on the door: "Open the door! Come out!"

Lu Gao said to Zhao Hu, "Take a few men and go out through the back window. I'll hold them off from the front door for a while."

Zhao Hu said anxiously: "Sir!"

Lu Gao interrupted him: "This is an order, go now!"

Zhao Hu gritted his teeth and led the three men out of the back window.

Daiguo straightened his clothes, opened the door, and went out.

Dozens of Yongqing Guard soldiers had already poured into the courtyard of the inn.

The leader was Ma Cheng, who was holding a knife. He saw Lu Gao and sneered, "You're the leader of this group?"

Lu Gao looked at him: "I am Lu Gao, the Vice Commander of the Embroidered Uniform Guard, ordered to investigate this case. What do you mean by this?"

Ma Cheng laughed loudly: "Investigate a case? How come I've never heard of that?"

Brothers, this group is impersonating the Imperial Guards and plotting something sinister.

Take it!

No sooner had he finished speaking than several soldiers rushed forward.

Lu Gao raised both hands: "Have you thought this through? The Emperor personally appoints the Embroidered Uniform Guard to handle cases. If you touch me today, you will all die."

Ma Cheng laughed even louder: "Die? I'll let you die first!"

He waved his hand, and the soldiers swarmed forward.

The two sides immediately engaged in a fierce battle.

Although the Imperial Guards were few in number, each one was carefully selected.

Although Yongqing Guard had many soldiers, most of them were old and weak who had not been trained for a long time.

In addition, the cramped space in the inn's rooms made it difficult for them to subdue Dai Gao and his group for the time being.

In the back alley, Zhao Hu was leading three men out.

They had just climbed out of the back window when they encountered the people lying in ambush.

There were at least twenty or thirty soldiers from Yongqing Guard at both ends of the alley.

Without saying a word, Zhao Hu drew his sword and started slashing.

The three men behind him also drew their knives and charged forward with him.

The street fighting was intense but brief.

Zhao Hu's swordsmanship was excellent; he cut down three soldiers in succession.

But one by one, the people around him fell down.

In the end, only Zhao Hu was left.

A soldier from Yongqing Guard stabbed him in the side.

Zhao Hu was unable to dodge in time and was stabbed in the ribs.

He grunted, swung his sword backhand and cut the man down before continuing to charge forward.

Finally, he rushed out of the alley and turned into another street.

The shouts of the pursuers behind them continued.

Zhao Hu stumbled and ran, clutching his wound.

Suddenly an arrow shot out and hit him in the back.

Zhao Hu fell to the ground.

Several pursuers caught up and surrounded him.

A soldier raised his sword to strike.

Zhao Hu looked up at him and suddenly smiled.

The soldier paused for a moment, his sword frozen in mid-air.

With his last breath, Zhao Hu hissed, "The Embroidered Uniform Guards—investigating this case—you—all of you—must die—"

Before the words were even finished, the soldier's sword came down.

The battle inside the inn is nearing its end.

Eleven of the twenty-odd Imperial Guards died.

The remaining few, including Lu Gao, were all surrounded in the courtyard, covered in injuries.

Ma Cheng walked up to Lu Gao, sword in hand, and sized him up: "A Vice Commander of the Embroidered Uniform Guard? Is that all you've got?"

Lu Gao's mouth was bleeding, but he was still smiling: "Ma Cheng, right? Do you know what you did today?"

Ma Cheng sneered: "What did we do? We arrested a few thugs impersonating Imperial Guards."

Lu Gao spat out a mouthful of bloody foam: "Impersonation? I have a badge and an imperial decree. You've offended a high-ranking official; you're committing rebellion!"

Ma Cheng's expression changed slightly, but he quickly recovered: "Rebellion? I'm just following the commander's orders to investigate a case."

What official appointed by the imperial court? I didn't see him.

He waved his hand: "Take him away and lock him in the dungeon for a thorough interrogation."